Picture of the Sharp Aquos Smart TV, showing the Wireless Setup screen, when the TV is disconnected from saved wireless network NETGEAR61.

How to Connect Sharp Smart TV to WiFi

In this piece, we show how to connect a Sharp smart TV to WiFi.  Why?  Because these TVs can run apps, as a tablet or smart phone does. And many of which need internet access.  The Sharp high definition television we demo here for example, gets that access via Ethernet or a WiFi network.  With internet then, you can enjoy its full feature set from Netflix to Hulu, without the pains of running Ethernet cables around your home.

Thus, when you first set up a Sharp smart TV, you must program the WiFi connection details into it to gain access to all these app-based features. Then, the television stores this info, and then uses it to log into the network when you access internet-based apps through it.

Picture of a Sharp smart TV, displaying an HD channel.
A typical Sharp smart TV, showing an HD channel.

But for many reasons, this network info may expire. This then requires a reprogramming of the WiFi network on the TV.  E.g. You may later change your WiFi network name (SSID), password, or move your TV to a new location, or want to put it on a different router.  This can happen when you buy a new router, you forget the old SSID and password that your now-gone network needed for login, and so you make up new names, passwords, et al.  Once the network settings saved in the Sharp smart TV go stale, the TV can no longer connect to the WiFi.  Thus, any online apps that you run on it, will not function until you restore this connection.

You Need to Understand How to Connect Sharp Smart TV to WiFi When…

But when you do access the apps, you’ll definitely notice a problem.  In the Netflix case for example, the system may tell you that the network connection is currently unavailable, and then prompt you to try logging into Netflix again.  Or, it may just throw up the Netflix introductory screen, and then seem to just hang or lock up.  Nor does exiting the app and restarting it fix the problem.   When an app repeatedly fails to run, this likely means that something is wrong with the television’s WiFi connection.

Indeed, our 2011 Sharp smart TV gives no immediate signal of lost WiFi connections.  That is, until you try to access an internet-enabled app on it.  So, you may not see for some time that it has lost its WiFi link; especially if you spend most of your time watching regular or HD channels, as shown above.

How to Connect Sharp Smart TV to WiFi

Follow the step-by-step procedure below to diagnose the problem and to connect the Sharp TV to a working, in-range WiFi network.

1. View Current WiFi Network Status on the TV

Each app may respond differently to a broken WiFi connection.  These symptoms often appear for other reasons as well.  So to check that your smart television has indeed lost its WiFi, and that the stored connection information is out-of-date, bring up the Network Status screen as follows.

1a. Visit the TV’s Main Menu

Access the set’s main menu by pressing the MENU button on its remote control.

The menu appears across the top of the screen, as shown next.

Picture of the Main Menu as displayed on a Sharp smart television.
Main Menu on a typical Sharp smart TV.

1b. Move to the Initial Setup Option

Then, highlight the Initial Setup menu item, by pressing the remote control’s left and right arrow keys until that app image turns blue (highlighted), as shown next.

Picture of the TV, showing the -Initial Setup- menu item selected.
The TV, showing the -Initial Setup- menu item selected.

1c. Go to the Internet Setup Item to Continue with How to Connect Sharp Smart TV to WiFi

Then move into that menu with the remote’s DOWN arrow key, until you’ve selected the Internet Setup option, as shown next.

Showing the -Internet Setup- menu item selected.
Showing the -Internet Setup- menu item selected.

Next. press and release the ENTER button on the remote.





This takes you to the Internet Setup menu, as shown next.

Picture of a Sharp smart TV, with the -Network Setup- menu item selected.
A Sharp smart TV, with the -Network Setup- menu item selected.

1d. Bring Up the Network Setup Page

Next, press the ENTER button on the Sharp smart TV remote.

The television then displays the Network Setup screen, as shown next.

Picture of the TV, displaying the -Network Setup- screen.
The TV, displaying the -Network Setup- screen.

1e. Bring Up the Wireless Setup Menu

Then, press the DOWN arrow key on the remote once, to select the Wireless Setup  menu item, shown next.

The TV then fills in the right two-thirds of the screen with the currently-saved network connection information as well as the connection status to that network.

Note in the next picture that the television IS NOT connected to the WiFi network NETGEAR61, because the Transmission Type and Signal Strength fields are blank (showing dashes).    This is proof that the Sharp smart TV has disconnected from the saved WiFi network, and needs this network data updated.  Look at step 7 below to see a version of this screen that shows a properly-working network connection.

Picture of the TV, showing the -Wireless Setup- screen, when the TV is disconnected from saved wireless network NETGEAR61.
The TV, displaying the -Wireless Setup- screen, when the TV is disconnected from the saved wireless network NETGEAR61.

2. Enter Wireless Setup Mode to Continue with How to Connect Sharp Smart TV to WiFi

Then, with the Wireless Setup menu item highlighted, press the ENTER key on the remote. This highlights the Change button, as shown in the next picture.

Picture of the Sharp smart TV, displaying the -Network Setup- screen with Change button selected.
A Sharp smart TV, displaying the Network Setup screen with Change button selected.

Next, press and quickly release the ENTER key on the remote.

This brings up the Select Connection Method screen.

Once this screen appears, use the remote’s arrow keys to select the Search item, as shown next.  We could have also used the WPS or Manual Setup options.  But we chose the Search method instead, that scans for WiFi networks in this scenario.

If you pick WPS, follow the instructions that appear on the screen.  Then, when your WiFi connection is successfully made, skip down to step 7 below.

Or, you could manually enter the new network’s SSID, security type, and password without scanning for visible networks.  To do that, pick the Manual Setup option.  Setting up WiFi connections in this way is beyond the scope of this article.  Yet the prompts are pretty straight forward, and you’ll see a lot of the same screens as are shown in  this  procedure.

Picture of the TV, displaying the -Select Connection Method- screen, with the -Search- button selected.
The TV, displaying the -Select Connection- Method screen, with the -Search- button selected.

3. Scan for Available WiFi Networks

Then, press ENTER on the remote. This starts a scan of both the 2.4 and 5 Ghz. bands for in-range WiFi networks.  This particular Sharp smart TV can connect to either Wireless G or N networks.





Then, after a brief pause, WiFi networks of all eligible types appear in the resulting list on the Select Wireless Network (SSID) screen that appears when the network scan is complete.  This is shown next.

Picture of the TV, displaying the -Select Wireless Network- screen.
The TV, displaying the -Select Wireless Network- screen.

4. Choose the WiFi Network to Connect the Sharp Smart TV With

Use the remote’s UP and DOWN arrow keys to move the selector about this list until the desired network is highlighted.  In our case, we want the 937T681J4059H_5G network.  So we’ve selected it as shown in the last picture above.

5. Enter the WiFi Network’s Password to Continue with How to Connect Sharp Smart TV to WiFi

When the desired WiFi network is highlighted, press and quickly release the remote’s ENTER key.

This brings up the Enter security key for the wireless router / access point screen, as shown next.

Picture of the TV, displaying the -Enter Security Key of the Wireless Router- screen.
The TV, displaying the -Enter Security Key of the Wireless Router- screen.

5a. Bring Up the Virtual Keyboard

Press the ENTER key again, to bring up the on-screen alphanumeric keyboard, as shown next.

Picture of the TV, displaying the -Password Entry- virtual keyboard onscreen.
The TV, displaying the -Password Entry- virtual keyboard onscreen.

5b. Type in the WiFi Password

Then, for each character in the password, navigate around the onscreen keyboard with the remote’s arrow keys to find the desired character.  When said character is highlighted in blue, press the ENTER key on the remote, to add it to the password buffer, which is displayed across the top of the keyboard.

How to Use the Virtual Onscreen Keyboard

Highlight and click the CAPS (ON, OFF, LOCK) key to switch between lowercase, single uppercase, and all uppercase letters.

To enter letters, navigate to the Character Set menu, and select the Alphabet character set.  For numbers, again navigate to the Character Set pull down menu, and select the Numbers character set.  To input symbols and punctuation, choose the Sign character set.

To erase characters, navigate to the Return, Delete key and press the ENTER key.  This erases the character beneath the cursor and moves all characters to the right of it, one position to the left to fill in the vacated space.  Press the Clear key to erase all the characters in this little editor entered so far, and start over.

An example of this keyboard with a partially-entered password is shown in the next picture.  Notice the so-far entered characters in the edit field across the top of the keyboard.

Picture of a Sharp smart TV, displaying the onscreen keyboard with the WiFi password entered.
A Sharp smart TV, displaying the onscreen keyboard with the WiFi password entered.

5c. Press the  Done   Key to Continue with How to Connect Sharp Smart TV to WiFi

Once you’ve entered the correct password characters, navigate to the Done key and quickly press and release the ENTER key on the remote.

The onscreen keyboard then goes away, revealing once more the Enter Security Key  screen, but with the password field there now filled in with stars, as shown next.

Picture of a Sharp smart TV, displaying the -Enter Security Key- screen, with the key field filled In.
Sharp smart TV, displaying the -Enter Security Key- screen, with the key field filled In.

You have now entered the WiFi network password successfully.





6. Press the Next Button To Check Network Credentials You Just Entered

Begin a connection attempt to the WiFi network whose password you just entered, by highlighting the Next button on the screen in the previous picture, and then quickly pressing and releasing the ENTER key on the remote.

The virtual keyboard closes, and the Establish Wireless Connection screen appears, showing the chosen network SSID, security type, and the security key that you entered, as pictured next.

Note that we blanked out the password with “pink paint,” as the password is visible on this screen.

Picture of the TV displaying the -Establish Wireless Connection--Confirm Network Information- screen.
The TV displaying the -Establish Wireless Connection-Confirm Network Information- screen.

Check that the password, as shown here, is right.  If not, you may press the RETURN key, which commences a new scan for in-range wireless networks, and takes you back to the list of WiFi networks this scan found, as displayed in step  3 above.  Continue from there, to re-enter the security key (password).

7. Press the ENTER Key on the Remote

Otherwise, if the password looks correct, quickly press and release the ENTER key on the remote.

The Sharp smart TV then attempts to create a WiFi connection with the new WiFi network.  You may see “Connecting…” messages for several seconds while the television contacts the network to authenticate.

But if all goes well, the  Wireless setup completed  screen displays, as shown next.

Picture of a Sharp Aquos smart TV, displaying the -Wireless Setup Completed- screen when successful connection is made to the wireless network listed there.
A Sharp smart TV, displaying the -Wireless Setup Completed- screen when successful connection is made to the wireless network listed there.

8. Check New Network Connection Info to See that your Sharp TV is Connected to the Correct WiFi Network

Press the ENTER key on the remote.

This again displays the Setup wireless connection screen.  But this time, a successful connection is working.  Verify this by examining the Transmission Type  and  Signal Strength  fields, which unlike the same screen in step 1 above, are now filled in and not blank, here.

Picture of a Sharp smart TV, displaying the -Setup Wireless Connection- screen, while successfully connected to a WiFi network.
A Sharp smart TV, displaying the -Setup Wireless Connection- screen, while successfully connected to a WiFi network.

9. You’re Finished with How to Connect Sharp Smart TV to WiFi !

You have now successfully configured your smart TV to connect with a working WiFi network.

Press the  EXIT  key to leave the screen above, and return to regular TV viewing.

You’re done.  Enjoy your internet TV viewing!

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References for How to Connect Sharp Smart TV to WiFi

  1. Sharp Smart TVs   Official Product Page

Revision History

  • 2020-08-02: First posted.